If there was going to one NJ mayoral race video to go viral, it makes sense it's North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco's reelection video—because his video features Tyler "TyAlaxandar" Griffin rapping "I be from North Bergen, son." And Sacco's campaign's reaction to the unexpected attention? "We're surprised and delighted."
Philip Swibinski, an account executive at Vision Media Political, which produced the ad, tells us that his company tries to break through from the "cookie cutter" nature of political advertising—they have used a Sarah Palin impersonator for a radio ad that later won an award. However, they're not selling the official "I Be From North Bergen, Son" t-shirt (there's a knock-off on Zazzle, though).
Swabinski's father, Paul, told AllHipHop.com, "We needed to find a way to break through the standard format and clutter of positive and negative political ads to really make viewers listen to the real achievements Nick Sacco has brought to North Bergen... The idea of a rap ad represents just one of our many creative approaches over the years to help elect incumbents and challengers alike."
